What should I be paid to sell things on eBay?

[brendan1414]

So I'm an 18 year old, fresh and new to the job market and my grandmother found a job for me. There is a guy who owns an antique shop and needed someone to research, price, take pictures of, and sell a vast majority of items. My guess is between $10-$500 items, mostly being $50 items. I talked with him yesterday nd basically got instantly hired. I start today and most importantly we discuss my PAY today. It's a difficult pay to set because if he gives me hourly (im there from 4-6 which is close), I wouldn't have much incentive to list a whole lot and i would only get 2 hours which at min wage wouldn't be worth my time. So i started to think about per listing prices. my best idea is $3 + %2 of final value. That way if i list up a $100 item that sell, i take away $5 from it. I mean I did do all the work besides buy the thing so i think this is a fair price. Let me know what you guys think and i will consider different options. Is the $3+2% too low or high? thanks!

 

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[dougrchamberlain]

You are extremely underselling yourself. Most consignment places do like 10%-20% even up to 50%. The idea being that your boss wants to get 100$ for it. You do such a great job on the listing you are able to sell it for 200$. Now you just made 20 bucks at the minimum. 2% wouldn't cover the fact that things won't always sell the first time and all the time and energy you spend making the listings. A good ebay listing can take over an hour to make in some cases.

 

[Iron Patch]

Ok, I've actually done this before so can speak from experience.... but before I can say much more, I assume he is paying 100% of the fees and ALL costs involved. (The ebay name will be registered to him/ his business?) Who is doing the packing? Who's writing the descriptions? Who is monitoring the page once the items are on? If he is a business, unless he's going out of business, I would guess he doesn't plan to start everything low - which means a lot probably won't sell the first time around, or the better idea is to start a store and do fixed prices, maybe including best offer. Again I have to know more to say more, but I bet it's going to be way more work than you anticipate.

Why only 4-6? Is that your choice or his? That might be ok if he has the pictures and descriptions ready for you, but otherwise that's no time at all. Remember when someone buys online the item is only as good as the listing. For antiques you would want several good quality pictures and at least a short to-the-point, description.

 

[Iron Patch]

You are extremely underselling yourself. Most consignment places do like 10%-20% even up to 50%. The idea being that your boss wants to get 100$ for it. You do such a great job on the listing you are able to sell it for 200$. Now you just made 20 bucks at the minimum. 2% wouldn't cover the fact that things won't always sell the first time and all the time and energy you spend making the listings. A good ebay listing can take over an hour to make in some cases.

But he's not a consignment place, sounds like what he'll be doing is a lot more in line with simply being a store employee.

To put an antique shop inventory online and keep control of it, you would definitely need someone more than 2 hours a day.

 

[jerseyben]

I have a real issue what this situation and I think you need to re-evaluate it before committing to this:

What Iron Patch said couldn't be more spot on.
Who is paying the fees and shipping costs?
Who is handling packing/shipping the items?
Who's ebay and paypal account is going to be used?
Who is going to monitor the auctions? Set prices? Write descriptions?

Tell this guy to shop around and see what professional places are charging for a similar service. He will be real surprised at how expensive it can be. Selling things on ebay is EXTREMELY time consuming and it really involves business knowledge almost equivalent to that of running a real business/store. I have a feeling he THINKS he is hiring you for data entry but I doubt he has any idea how involved actually selling things can be on ebay.

You would basically be hired as a sales manager but only being paid minimum wage. I would ask for close to 10% on every item sold and even then I would be 100% sure you are using HIS account and that HE is paying all fees and handling the shipping/packing. If he wants you to do the shipping/packing, I would ask him to supply all materials and then charge at least 15% commission per item.

 

[Iron Patch]

I have a real issue what this situation and I think you need to re-evaluate it before committing to this:

What Iron Patch said couldn't be more spot on.
Who is paying the fees and shipping costs?
Who is handling packing/shipping the items?
Who's ebay and paypal account is going to be used?
Who is going to monitor the auctions? Set prices? Write descriptions?

Tell this guy to shop around and see what professional places are charging for a similar service. He will be real surprised at how expensive it can be. Selling things on ebay is EXTREMELY time consuming and it really involves business knowledge almost equivalent to that of running a real business/store. I have a feeling he THINKS he is hiring you for data entry but I doubt he has any idea how involved actually selling things can be on ebay.

You would basically be hired as a sales manager but only being paid minimum wage. I would ask for close to 10% on every item sold and even then I would be 100% sure you are using HIS account and that HE is paying all fees and handling the shipping/packing. If he wants you to do the shipping/packing, I would ask him to supply all materials and then charge at least 15% commission per item.

Yep, it's one of those things that looks good on paper until you actually do it! (It takes a lot of time) I do think it can be worked out, but the store owner has to understand he should look at this almost like an investment, and be willing to pay to take his business online.

 

[BosnMate]

Working on a commission basis, if an item doesn't sell, then it seems to me you have wasted a lot of time because you are not being paid. If half the stuff you list sells, then you are working for 5% instead of 10. My son worked for a motorcycle store, selling parts etc. on ebay. He got paid a wage, above minimum by a couple of dollars, plus a bonus on stuff that sold. He was selling hard to find motorcycle parts along with new stuff, and he did really good, because the stuff was selling. His main problem was keeping track of what people bought and getting it shipped etc. They had a room full of stuff waiting for the check to arrive so it could be shipped, and he didn't have to do any of that. There was a guy hired to pack and ship. For them at the time, so much was selling so fast that keeping track of what and where was a real problem.

 

[Iron Patch]

Working on a commission basis, if an item doesn't sell, then it seems to me you have wasted a lot of time because you are not being paid. If half the stuff you list sells, then you are working for 5% instead of 10. My son worked for a motorcycle store, selling parts etc. on ebay. He got paid a wage, above minimum by a couple of dollars, plus a bonus on stuff that sold. He was selling hard to find motorcycle parts along with new stuff, and he did really good, because the stuff was selling. His main problem was keeping track of what people bought and getting it shipped etc. They had a room full of stuff waiting for the check to arrive so it could be shipped, and he didn't have to do any of that. There was a guy hired to pack and ship. For them at the time, so much was selling so fast that keeping track of what and where was a real problem.

That's along the lines of what I think would work best.

Decent wage per hour, min. 4 hour shifts, and some type of sales bonus as incentive. It's almost impossible to do % in this situation. Maybe as time goes on, and both sides see how it is, then maybe a percentage can be established, but for now it would greatly over-complicate things and probably end in failure.

 

[diggummup]

You need to answer the questions Iron Patch threw out there, before this can be answered adequately.

 

[JoeB45]

What has worked for me in the past is 30% of the profit after all of the fees have been paid. You should also add a small amount to the Shipping and Handling to cover packing materials, etc. Since he has some high dollar items you may also want to consider a maximum commission amount. Thirty percent on a $500 sale will more than likely put him in the red on the item. So work out something with him like 30% up to $50, or something like that.

As others have said, don't undersell yourself. You will have a LOT of time invested. I have over 500 feedbacks with a 100% rating. If you need any help or tips on getting started let me know, I'd be glad to help you out.

 

[treasurehound]

Wow. What ever you do read everything here first. If you are only making $5 on a $100 item sold there is no way that is worth your time. I have been on eBay for over 10 yrs and it can be very time consuming if you have a lot of items to list and take care of (package to ship and take to post office). I have sold for other people as well and they have not all be the same. One person wanted a very reasonable price and I kept the difference that it sold for. Others I would charge a listing fee and usually 10 or 20 percent of the selling price. I was doing all the work and all they did was provide the item to be sold. It needs to be a win/win for both of you.

 

[brendan1414]

Finally remembered this post I did. I shall answer questions first i guess:

-He has his own account for the business, up and running with a bunch of feeback at 100%
-His wife has been doing the listings for a while, and she is doing ALL of the shipping and keeping track of the money
-I write up listings and take pictures and i can do this fast and efficiently. Not too much of a huge description, and usually copying information from online if the item is a specific model of something
-It IS worth $5 to me to put up a $100 listing, i get $3 for any other one, so i will certainly take the extra money! Especially when it takes me only 10-15 mins per listing.

So far i've worked 2 days and i probably worked solidly for 1 1/2 hours and combined ive done 17 listings. The owner does all of his as low no reserve auctions, so i get my money with a single low bid, and if it goes high enough i get a 2% bonus. Another note, i AM only 18 and just started working here, but i do have experience with antiques and a bunch of ebay experience as well!

 

[RGINN]

Well, you won't like this, but....you're 18 and your grandma found you a job, why don't you ask her what you should be paid? Maybe he can't pay you what you're worth cause you don't work that cheap!? That was terrible, I guess, and sorry, no offense intended. Sounds like a potentially cool job, but I don't think you can do it right for the guy for $8 an hour from 4-6. Ironpatch has some good info. The best thing might be to jump in there at the ground level, do a good job, and then you got something to bargain with. If he sees you can make some money for him, he'll probably work with you. Good luck to you.

 

[Iron Patch]

Finally remembered this post I did. I shall answer questions first i guess:

-He has his own account for the business, up and running with a bunch of feeback at 100%
-His wife has been doing the listings for a while, and she is doing ALL of the shipping and keeping track of the money
-I write up listings and take pictures and i can do this fast and efficiently. Not too much of a huge description, and usually copying information from online if the item is a specific model of something
-It IS worth $5 to me to put up a $100 listing, i get $3 for any other one, so i will certainly take the extra money! Especially when it takes me only 10-15 mins per listing.

So far i've worked 2 days and i probably worked solidly for 1 1/2 hours and combined ive done 17 listings. The owner does all of his as low no reserve auctions, so i get my money with a single low bid, and if it goes high enough i get a 2% bonus. Another note, i AM only 18 and just started working here, but i do have experience with antiques and a bunch of ebay experience as well!

Sounds to me like you have it figured out and is working well. So you're going in the right direction.

 

[RGINN]

Well Brendan I didn't see that last post before I responded. Sounds like you're doin alright and got it figured out. It does sound like a cool job, mainly just to be around the antiques. I have all the job I can handle right now, but that could end at any time, so maybe if your Grandma knows of some other cool job, she could just casually mention it.....

 

[diggummup]

I would say, if your into antiques and collectibles, use this time to learn and start acquiring knowledge that will help you in the future. Your in a unique position to get more out of this job than just the few extra bucks your making. The knowledge you gain now will undoubtedly only give you an advantage in the future.

PS- What kind of stuff have you listed? Care to give the ebay username? I'd like to take a look at what he's got.

 

[Iron Patch]

I would say, if your into antiques and collectibles, use this time to learn and start acquiring knowledge that will help you in the future. Your in a unique position to get more out of this job than just the few extra bucks your making. The knowledge you gain now will undoubtedly only give you an advantage in the future.

PS- What kind of stuff have you listed? Care to give the ebay username? I'd like to take a look at what he's got.

Totally agree. When I started detecting in the late 90s I was a junky both getting out, as well as reading the forums about relics and coins, and it taught me quite a bit. There's really no short cut to this stuff so getting started at 18 is perfect timing. Having said that, I would suggest to just look at it as something on the side for the future because it's probably not a business that's easy to make a lot of money in.

 

[pat-tekker-cat]

Good luck with the new job and excellent info from all the above guys!
I used to sell for a collectibles store, for 20%, with them covering fees and all.
In fact, I'm just getting ready to start auctions again, after being absent for many years.

Again, good luck to you, much love, and many blessings........

(maybe we should all share user Ebay names, always nice to get honest,
real feedback and advice, from good folks like those here. Thank you everyone!)
oh edit: Few weeks ago, I called a store or 2 that sells for ppl around here, they charge 30%)

 

[Twisted One]

I honestly think you should be making a little bit more per sell. But in my opinion the experience, and knowledge you gain from this now will be worth more than the money in the long run.
Perhaps if you show a large increase in his sales, and profit, you can sit down an re-evaluate how much you are worth to him in a few months.

The only consignment job I have done was a delivery service, and I had a set wage plus commission, and when the owner found out I increased his sales on most routes I took by 15 to 25% in a two month period he took it upon himself to add bonuses for increased sales. Sadly not all employers are like that, but small mom and pop store owners are more likely to do so then any big store.

Like I said, at 18, a little cash is nice, especially if you can make enough to cover gas, and car insurance or whatever else you need to. But the experience is where the money will be in the future.

 

[brendan1414]

Thanks for the good luck from everyone! no offense taken RGINN either, i know it sounded a bit too good to be true at first and skepticism of me actually getting the job was rampant, but he really was in demand for someone like me! Heres the store name:

nwj555

I will be putting up a good 7-10 items up per day and clearing out inventory, and the best part is that he starts at a low price and lets it bid up from there, so if you like something you have a good chance at getting it cheap! Any suggestions to my listing style (i know it can be generic at times) would be appreciated!